Victoria’s Affordable Housing Pipeline Flowing

The Victorian government is making progress on a $63-million social housing project just as getting a home officially becomes harder than ever.

The 130-home Heidelberg West development is a mix of social and affordable housing to replace 60 homes no longer fit for purpose.

The state has moved past the halfway mark on its $5.3-billion Big Home Build with more than 7600 homes completed or underw ay since November 2020 from a 12,000 home target.

Projects under development included the 290-home project in Preston, 200 homes in Brunswick West and 150 homes in Flemington plus major developments in Ballarat and Bendigo.

Despite these efforts in Victoria, and across the country, getting a rental or buying a new home is increasingly difficult.

New research from Ahuri revealed homeownership for people born in the late 1980s was significantly less than for first homebuyers born in previous decades.

Modern first home buyers face house prices three times those faced by previous generations, while only earning 1.6 times the income—and rents continue to rise. 

The data was revealed as Australia’s unemployment rate was recorded at 3.5 per cent in June according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data.

▲ The Harvest Square project in Brunswick West and Victoria Street in Flemington.

University of Sydney professor Stephen Whelan was one of the authors on the research released by Ahuri, along with reserchers from RMIT.

“Our research certainly shows that during the last 30 years, ownership rates for households at age 30 to 34 have declined substantially,” Whelan said.

“From 65 per cent of people born in the mid to late 1950s being home owners by age 30­ to 34, to only 45 per cent of people born in the mid to late 1980s.

“Our research shows that as these younger groups of people grow older they are less likely to ‘catch up’ and buy a home.”